Request: Grand Cayman recommendations?

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hanglide

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We are researching a June 2018 trip to the Caymans.

We will be staying on Grand Cayman (Since it's our first trip, I didn't want to waste time with layovers before getting to Little Cayman or Cayman Brac - we'll just have to come back another time to dive them)

I'm leaning towards staying at TNI -thanks to those who have mentioned it in other posts- not locked in yet so still open to suggestions.

We'll probably do 4-5 2 tank dives and shore dive the rest of the days.

Recommendations for Dive Ops for the boat dives and/or air for shore dives?

Dive sites that "can't be missed"?

Books? Maps? Guides?

Restaurants, things to do etc..?

ANY input would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,

Scott
 
I stayed at Compass Pointe Resort on the East End last year about this time last year. https://compasspointdiveresort.com

It offers everything you need on site and the dive operation, Ocean Frontiers, was fabulous. The problem for you may be there is not much shore diving on that side of the island, or so I am told, but with a boat in the morning and boat in the afternoon from the resort's dock, not sure what shore diving would have added to the trip. East end is isolated, so you will need a rental car if you want to go far off the premises.

The dive operation offers a number of downloads that you will find useful. Check out the scuba log book. I got a printed copy at the shop.

Downloads

Hope you like it as much as I did.
 
The closest shop to TNI is Ocean Frontiers - a little farther east on the SE side - my buddy dives with them when they stay at TNI. Scuba Diving Trips on the East End of Grand Cayman in the Cayman Islands

Next would probably be one of the shops in south Georgeown. For shore dives there's Sunset House - worth an afternoon - lunch at My Bar, dive the Mermaid, see the Cathy Church photo galley/store. Then one of the operators 5 min north by the busy cruise pier - those include Don Fosters (the cruise op) or shops working out of the waterfront pier(s) nearby - Wall to Wall or Deep Blue at the Lobster Pot Dive Center or Off the Wall nearby - personally I regularly recommend Wall to Wall regularly but they're all good at what they do.Might be 30mins. or so from TNI.

You can also shore dive at Eden Rock/Devils Grotto downtown but it's 500' from the cruise tender port and they may have started dredging for the new pier now. It's pretty tired also due to all the cruise traffic. Driving is on the left, the cruise tourists look right b4 stepping out in front of you so watch for them downtown. One exception is when the Silversides show up - often in June - then it's exceptional -
If you want to bypass the fuss that is Georgetown most port days, try any on this list: Cayman Islands Tourism Association - CITA Member by Watersports/Dive Sector Bad operations don't las as they all provide the same cost/service options.

One day drive up to Turtle Reef - arguably the best easy access shore dive on Cayman. Nearby are both Lighthouse Point or Cobalt Coast - 2 other good shore dives. Macabuca for lunch and non-divers might enjoy the Turtle Farm, Boatswains Beach (waterpark) or the Tortuga Rum Cake factory. Snorkel trips to Sandbar/Stingray City leave from a marina on the way.

Most of the shore dives have a dive facility/resort on them so you rent tanks from them. Most or all of them don't allow tank removal from the premises. For the few other shore dives - Eden Rock in town or Divers Supply in West Bay are the two rental sources.

Dive365Cayman.com
covers most everything.
 
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Check the Regional Forums, Greater Antilles, Grand Cayman on ScubaBoard. There have been a lot of similar question and numerous answers/recommendations in the past few weeks. It seems everyone has their favorite dive shops, but that can help you get a nice list of options for your dive requirements. While there may be the odd, less than stellar dive shops, I have not heard bad ones mentioned on ScubaBoard, and that should be a good thing for you.
 
We love the Caymans and Turtle Nest Inn and there are many fine dive ops on the island. We've had good experiences with Cayman University Divers but TNI has a relationship with DNS dive op and they are another fine company.

You didn't say how many people will be in your party and how many are divers? Are you looking for a 1-bedroom apartment/condo or something larger? You can find both at TNI and there is very nice snorkeling right off the beach and the rental car is included.

But as much as I love TNI, if I was planning to do that much diving on GC, I might prefer to stay at a place with an onsite dive op just for the convenience and because it would be closer to the marina and rush hour traffic can be difficult. Or I might look for a place without an onsite dive op but on the West Side but North of Seven Mile Beach, closer to most of the shore dives and an easier drive to the West Bay Marina to meet many of the dive boats.

When we go to GC we mostly snorkel and shore dive and if the weather is good we will arrange a few boat dives. We tend to spend our first week relaxing on GC and TNI is perfect for that, and we spend our second week on Brac or Little at a dedicated-dive resort, although one time we boarded the Cayman Aggressor and did a lot of diving.

A few places on GC with onsite dive ops include:

- Compass Point - is on the East End and far from many restaurants, shops, and activities but close to East End diving and the onsite dive op (Ocean Friends) offers valet services. No onsite shore dive. Small beach on the property. (Morritt's is a large condo complex nearby and Red Sail is the onsite dive op.)

- Sunset House - South of George Town and the Seven Mile Beach. Breakfast is included but they do not offer apartments or kitchenettes so you will be eating out much of the time and that can get expensive on GC. There is no beach but there is an onsite shore dive, although it has gotten mixed reviews. If you are a photographer, you will appreciate Cathy Church's onsite photo store and gallery. Sunset Divers is the onsite op and it is all ironshore, no beach.

- Lighthouse Point condos offer a great onsite shore dive and DiveTech is the onsite dive op. They are also the dive op at the Holiday Inn on the North End and will transport you to the shore dive or the marina if you stay at HI. I believe that most of the LP condos are larger but they are advertising a "couples special" with 1-bedroom units, but I don't know if these have full kitchen facilities. It gets very expensive to eat out 3 times a day on GC so a kitchen is a good option. There is no beach at LP.

- Coconut Bay Condo's are near Lighthouse Point and sit on a couple of great shore dives called Hepp's and Stingray Divers is the onsite op. But they only offer large, 3-bedroom condos so that may be too big for your party. There might be a small beach, I am not sure.

- Cobalt Coast is further North and they offer an all-inclusive option as well as some units with kitchen facilities. They are situated close to the beautiful North Wall and offer unlimited shore dives on the house reef, but the shore dive can get winded out pretty easily. Reef Divers is the onsite dive op and they provide valet services. They have a small, man-made beach.

Our favorite shore dive, Turtle Reef at Macabuca, is near Coconut Bay and Light House Point and the onsite dive op is Sun Divers and it costs about $15 CI to rent a tank and weights.

Grand Cayman isn't like Bonaire. You don't load up your car or truck with tanks and drive from shore dive to shore dive. Most shore dives have onsite dive ops and you rent tanks and weights from them. Resorts with onsite dive ops and shore dives usually offer unlimited shore dives on the house reef on days when you are boat diving with them - or you can rent shore dive tanks and weights from them if you are just passing through.

We rarely bother with the most famous shore dives of Eden Rock and Devil's Grotto, because there can be overrun with cruise ship divers and snorkelers and these sites have suffered a lot of damage. But there is always good fish life on these dives and they are easy. Since you are going in the spring/summer - find out if the Silversides are visiting, because that can really be something to see! Eden Rock Dive Center is the onsite dive op.

Having said all of the above, we still love Turtle Nest Inn, it is centrally located with access to the entire island. It is clean and comfortable but not luxurious. There are some restaurants nearby, but most of the popular restaurants are on the 7MB. The TNI managers and staff are friendly and pleasant. There is a nice little beach right outside but it is not the endless powdery white sands of 7MB, but the snorkeling is good.

The snorkeling reef is close and shallow and you have to get past some rocks and turtle grass to get there, but it isn't bad at all - not ironshore. But if you stay at TNI you have to be willing to do some driving on the left side of the road and deal with traffic if you are trying to get to the West Bay Marina or shore dive sites during rush hour. It might be easier to head to the East End to dive with Ocean Friends at Compass Point or Red Sail at Morritt's Resort.

But TNI is a real bargain IMO and it helps a lot to have the rental car included in the price. There are a lot of great places to stay and dive on GC, let us know what you decide to do!
 
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Wow! Thank you all for such well considered responses. There will be just the 2 of us and we both dive. We pretty much dive at least 2 tanks a day, everyday and budget is certainly a consideration.

How would you compare the traffic to Kralendijk Bonaire? Does the sand at 7mb extend into the water or is pretty much ironshore once you get in?

Driving is on left? I hadn't considered that. I've driven in some crazy places (Taiwan being right up there with the DR for craziness) and it never bothered me but every time I've been to a country that drives on the left, I've never had even the slightest urge to drive there. It can be hard enough crossing the street because my brain is so hard wired :-(. Is an international license required?

Again, thank you all for your advice.
 
Seven Mile Beach is nicer than anything on Bonaire - one of the nicest beaches in the Carib - makes for lousy diving though until you get out past it (requires a boat or a scooter) All the shore dives mentioned are off ironshore and have steps/ladders/dive dock. Some like Turtle Reef exit onto the reef thru a small, shallow cove - the mini-wall is about 50' out. At Sunset House you can jump off their dock or walk 100' north to the salt water pool and take the steps - the ocean side of the "pool" is open.

If you dive with Ocean Frontiers or Tortuga Divers (Red Sail) one of the best they do is Babylon - it's on a few of the 10 best dives in the world lists. The west side shops won't go there except on an extended 3-tank excursion - too far NE. I think Tortuga schedules it weekly - it's nearby.

Driving on the left takes a little thought. It takes a minute to get your brain around the rotaries but there's only about 4-5 of them. When you see headlghts/grilles approaching on your side pf tje street, it's probably Not them that are wrong...lol. - happened to us at least twice. To make it easier some companies offer left hand (US) drive vehicle options. We rented one from Andy's. at the airport.Traffic downtown is bad when the 3-5 cruise ships dock daily.Most leave by 5PM.

They sell you a Cayman license at the car rental place good for the time you're there - it's cheap.
 
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Wow! Thank you all for such well considered responses. There will be just the 2 of us and we both dive. We pretty much dive at least 2 tanks a day, everyday and budget is certainly a consideration. How would you compare the traffic to Kralendijk Bonaire? Does the sand at 7mb extend into the water or is pretty much ironshore once you get in? Driving is on left? I hadn't considered that. I've driven in some crazy places (Taiwan being right up there with the DR for craziness) and it never bothered me but every time I've been to a country that drives on the left, I've never had even the slightest urge to drive there. It can be hard enough crossing the street because my brain is so hard wired :-(. Is an international license required? Again, thank you all for your advice.

I really do recommend getting a car on Grand Cayman because there is a lot to see and do and taxis are expensive, and it is hot to try and walk very far, and if you stay in an apartment or condo you are going to need groceries.

If you stay in a quiet area like TNI in Boden Town and use an East End dive op like Ocean Friends or Red Sail, then you won't have to deal with much traffic. Just make sure that when you do drive to the George Town or West Bay area that you don't go during rush hour.

We also like to bring a Garmin GPS and car charger with us, not only because it helps us to find our way but it also guides us through the roundabouts.

But if you really prefer not to drive, consider one of the resorts with an onsite dive op listed above. Or stay in a place on the 7MB and arrange to have your dive shop pick you up.

Or go to Brac or Little Cayman and stay at an all-inclusive.

When you rent a car bring your drivers license with you and they will sell you a temporary driving permit for about $20 that is good for a month on all 3 Cayman islands.

Have a good trip!
 
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Everything that @KathyV said.
Traffic is comparable to Bonaire. Seven Mile Beach has no Iron shore at all. Complete sand and gorgeous for walking and sunbathing. No international driving license required for tourists.
 
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